Will Elon Musk-Trump's plan to dismantle USAID put people across world ‘at risk’? Dems warn ‘China will fill the void’
As Elon Musk has revealed the plans to eliminate the US foreign aid organisation USAID, here's how this move will impact the people across the world.
In a surprising announcement, Tesla and SpaceX CEO Elon Musk, the head of President Donald Trump's newly created DOGE department and federal cost-cutting panel, revealed the plans to eliminate the US foreign aid organisation USAID.
During a social media talk on X, Musk opened up about the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE). He told GOP leaders Vivek Ramaswamy, Joni Ernst and Mike Lee, that they are moving ahead with their goal to close the United States Agency for International Development (USAID).
“It's beyond repair,” Musk declared, highlighting that Trump has given his nod.
Musk even accused the USAID of being a “criminal organization”, while Trump claimed that it was “run by radical lunatics”.
“USAID is a criminal organization. It needs to die,” Musk wrote on X in response to a video that claimed USAID was involved in “rogue CIA work.”
Later, Musk asked his 215 million X followers, “Did you know that USAID, using YOUR tax dollars, funded bioweapon research, including Covid-19, that killed millions of people?”
The SpaceX CEO did not go into further detail, but officials from the previous administration connected the accusations to a Russian disinformation campaign.
Meanwhile, Trump hailed Musk by calling him “a big cost-cutter” and asserting that “he's doing a great job”.
According to three sources, the Trump administration fired two senior security personnel from USAID over the weekend for attempting to bar officials ofMusk's DOGE from entering restricted areas of the facility, Reuters reported.
Know what is USAID
Established in 1961, USAID is the biggest single donor in the world. According to the Congressional Research Service, USAID offers strategic assistance for international conflicts, aids in the fight against poverty and disease, and promotes the financial progress of developing nations.
Before its latest announced layoffs, the organisation employed over 10,000 individuals and gave more than $43 billion in aid to over130 countries in fiscal year 2023. Ukraine was the largest beneficiary of USAID funding in 2023 as Congress authorized more than $46 billion in emergency aid for the country, primarily through USAID after Russia launched a war against Ukraine in February 2022.
In 2024, it supplied 42% of all humanitarian aid monitored by the UN.
USAID's website went offline on Saturday and the agency's account on X vanished on Sunday, NBC News reported, adding that it signs outside the agency's building were also taken down on Friday. Numerous sources claim that hundreds of USAID staff members have been fired or placed on furlough.
Meanwhile, CNN reported that agency's public affairs team “was put on leave and locked out of their systems.”
Trump halts majority of global US foreign aid
As part of his “America First” strategy, Trump has put a global freeze on the majority of US foreign aid. Programs that could be eliminated include field hospitals in Thai refugee camps, landmine clearing in regions of war, and medications to treat millions of people stricken with illnesses like HIV.
Speaking about reducing US spending and fraud, Musk predicted that the Trump administration may reduce the US deficit by $1 trillion in the upcoming year.
For instance, the Tesla CEO said that “professional foreign fraud rings” are taking enormous quantities of money by impersonating or fabricating digital US citizens. He, however, provided no evidence to substantiate his claims.
Democrats denounce ‘total destruction’ of USAID
Senator Chris Murphy, a Democrat, has denounced the “total destruction” of the agency.
Congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez pointed out on X that Americans “elected” Trump to be President and not Musk.
“Having an unelected billionaire, with his own foreign debts and motives, raiding US classified information is a grave threat to national security,” she tweeted.
A senior official of a US-based group was concerned that Washington was prioritizing "emergency" aid as part of a larger scheme to stop funding anything else.
Impacts of shutting down USAID
Humanitarian organizations have cautioned that any attempt to dismantle USAID would have disastrous repercussions for the nations it supports.
According to Oxfam, “Dismantling USAID would be a callous, destructive political power play that would have deadly consequences for millions of people living in dire humanitarian emergencies and extreme poverty.”
Although shifting USAID's operations to the State Department might allow it to continue helping people to some degree, Oxfam contended that eliminating the agency would be a reckless waste of USAID's invaluable experience and strategic focus on aid. Moreover, it stated that the organisation would anticipate less impact and responsibility to the American people.
In a similar vein, Paul O'Brien, executive director of Amnesty International, stated that getting rid of the organization would “put the rights of millions of people around the world at greater risk,” claiming that all governments are “better equipped to meet their human rights obligations because of the technical and financial resources USAID provides.”
Sen. Chris Murphy, a Trump critic from Connecticut, claimed on X that the action would not only severely cut foreign aid for public health, anti-terrorism initiatives, and feeding undernourished children, but it would also strengthen China because nations that are no longer receiving US aid may turn to China for support and "cut more deals with" Xi Jinping government, giving China more power.
Recommended Topics